From Aphex Twin's "Windowlicker" to D'Angelo's "Untitled (How Does It Feel)", great music videos are quick bursts of sound and vision that leave an indelible impression. Director's Cut is a Pitchfork News feature in which we chat with music video directors about their creations. The men and women behind the camera are often overlooked in today's YouTube era, but this feature aims to highlight their hard work while showcasing the best videos currently banging around the internet. A little behind-the-scenes dirt couldn't hurt, too.

For this edition, we focus on Matt and Kim's indecent exposure extravaganza for Grand single "Lessons Learned", which finds the indie-pop duo...

The planned Cornelius/Deerhoof tour of Mexico and California was supposed to be an art-rocking adventure for the ears and eyes. Alas, the trek is now canceled due to "swine flu concerns and increased governmental travel restrictions," according to Cornelius's MySpace. The statement goes on to say that fans can look forward to a rescheduled tour in 2010...assuming swine flu hasn't killed off 70 percent of the world's population by that point and left the survivors hungry, desperate, and crazed. But that probably won't happen. I don't think.

Canceled dates after the jump:

Hey, remember when Kanye posted that blog photo with him and Jared Leto and Brandon Flowers looking like the worst Three Amigos remake cast imaginable? In the post, he mentioned working on a new track with Jared's generally horrific emo outfit 30 Seconds to Mars and, unfortunately, the collaboration is real.

According to an MTV.com report, the 30 Seconds to Kanye song-- featuring non-auto-tuned singing from Mr. West-- is called "Hurricane" and is due for inclusion on the band's next album. "I had actually brought up [the idea of working with West] some time ago, but it's pretty unbelievable that it actually happened," said Leto. You aren't the only one who can't...

As anyone who's listened to their music knows, Neutral Milk Hotel are really into old-timey stuff. You know, stuff like antique flying machines, Anne Frank, and carousels. And now, they would like to turn your attention to one carousel in particular: the Paragon Carousel in Hull, Massachusetts, which is in danger of being torn down. The carousel is currently up for a $100,000 grant from American Express and the National Trust for Historic Preservation as part of the 2009 Partners in Preservation program. To determine who gets the grant, they're currently holding an online vote. Julian Koster, with help from Jeff Mangum, has written a letter to...

M.I.A. joins people like Barack Obama, Oprah Winfrey, and, um, the Twitter Guys on TIME's 2009 list of the most influential people in the world. She matters! There's a corny interview video on TIME's website to prove it and everything. I remember the days when she was funding (aural) terrorism for a handful of internet dorks-- she's come a long way. Amazing what a trailer for a stoner movie can do nowadays. Check out the M.I.A. write-up by director Spike Jonze here.

Other musicians on the list include Chinese classical pianist Lang Lang, John Legend, and Indian superstar A.R. Rahman (aka the Slumdog Millionaire composer that M.I.A. collaborated with on the...